Container for use with fork lift trucks



Aug. 4, 1959 M. H. BECKNER CONTAINER FOR USE WITH FORK LIFT TRUCKS Filed Feb. 24, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

'M15 H T Tovsmf M. H. BECKNER CONTAINER FOR USE WITH FORK LIFT TRUCKS Aug. 4, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet-2 Filed Feb) 24,` 1958 INVENTOR. mars/veu H. .BECK/V52.

United States Patent O CONTAINER FOR USE WITH FORK LIFT TRUCKS Marshall H. Beckner, Washington, Pa., assign'or to Tri- State Engineering Company,.Washington, Pa., a corporationpof Maryland Application February 274, 1958, Serial No. 717,040 Claims. .(Cl. 280-12) My invention relates to containers that are preferably of wire mesh and metalframe construction, the present application constituting a continuation in part of my application Ser. No. 621,885, led November 13, 1956, issued as Patent 2,826,329.

It has for one object the production of containers of the ltype referred to that are conveniently stackable upon one another and which are especially suitable for use in transporting and storing articles of merchandise, etc., in that they can readily be moved into and out of railway car and truck bodies, for loading and unloading, and into and out of warehouses.

Another object of my invention is to provide a container of the type referred to wherein the container has an underframe to which are connected upstanding posts of either tubular or angular form and legs that afford direct support to the underframe and the corner posts at the lower ends of the posts, the legs being connected to downwardly directed floor bars that serve as skid members and which are nevertheless so positioned they do not interfere with the stacking of legs of one container upon the upper ends of the posts of another container.

As shown in the accompanying drawing:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a structure embodying my invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective View looking from the underside of a container, but showing a modification of the structure Of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a view showing the manner in which the containers may be stacked upon one another.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 show the manner in which the side and end walls of the crate of Fig. 1 are mounted upon the underframe.

Fig. 7 shows the manner in which the vertical walls and the bottom walls of Fig. 2 are mounted on the underframe.

Fig. 8 is a detail View of an upper corner of Fig. 2.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view on an enlarged scale through one of the feet of Fig. 2.

As shown in Fig. l, the container comprises four corner posts 10 of angular form closed at their upper ends by socket members 11 which have holes to receive tapered legs or feet 12 when the containers are stacked upon one another. The underframe is preferably formed of rectangularly arranged channel bars 13 and 14 at the sides and ends of the structure and which are welded at their ends to the posts 10.

The feet 12 have cap members 15 welded thereto and to the lower ends of the posts and the undersides of the frame members 13-14.

As shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6 the end walls 18 are formed of welded mesh. One side wall 19 is of welded mesh and the fourth wall comprises a lower stationary panel 20 to which an upper drop panel 21 is connected by a spiral hinge 22. The upper panel 21 is of shorter length than the panel 20 and is held in upright position by latches 23 that are slidable on the panels and into the posts as described in my said application. The pan- Patented Aug. 4, 1959 els 18, 19 and 20 are welded to the underframe members 13 and 14. The end panels 18 are of short height relative to the posts so that when a container is stacked on the posts, its floor strips or runners 24 of Figs. 1 and 2 will have clearance and not rest upon the side walls. Cap strips 25 ofl channel form embrace the upper edges of the end walls 18 and are welded to the posts, thus Y depth that they will rest upon a floor, with the legs 12 of somewhat shorter length. The strips 24 therefore serve as runners for sliding the containers along a oor. In Fig. l, the deck sheet 27 is supported at its intermediate areas upon angles such as 28 in Fig. 1 whose ends are welded to underframe members 13.

In Fig. 2, the underframe comprises channels 30 at opposite sides of the container deck, and channels 31 at the ends of the container, the channels being open upwardly as shown in Fig. 7. The outer legs of the channels are bent inwardly and upwardly to form flanges 29 and the deck mesh 27 is welded to the upper edges of these various flanges 29. The end walls 18, as well as the front lower panel 20 and the rear wall extend into these channels and are welded thereto, the vertical wires of the walls being offset inwardly at their lower ends and welded to the inner faces of the flanges 29, as shown in Fig. 7. The wires of the deck sheets are thus firmly held in place without projecting from beyond the outer faces of the underframe, and this is true also of the vertical walls, which are held firmly against outward bulgmg.

Fig. 2 also shows angle members 32 and 33 that comprise part of the underframe and support the areas of the deck sheet 27. The ends of the bars 32 are welded to frame members 30 and the ends of bars 33 are welded to the members 32.

Socket plates 34 are welded to the upper ends of the angular posts 35 of Fig. 2 and have holes drilled therein to serve as sockets for the tapered feet 36 that are flared upwardly at 37 and are welded to the undersides of the bars 30-31 and to the lower ends of the posts. The socket plates 34 have triangular extensions 34a and 34h that are welded to the post anges and serve to brace them against the weight of a superimposed container. Angles 40 are welded to the underframe and to the upper faces of the runners 24 to stilfen the runners. The ends of the runners are welded to the flared portions 37 of the feet.

I claim as my invention:

1. A lcontainer that comprises vertical side walls, a bottom wall, an underframe that supports said walls, feet extending downwardly from each corner of the underframe, corner posts secured 4to the underframe and projecting upwardly therefrom to a plane above two oppositely disposed vertical end walls and being arranged at their upper ends to support the feet of a like superposed container when stacked thereon, and floor-engaging runners disposed beneath the underframe and directly below the said vertical walls, the runners being mainly disposed along a plane substantially lower than the lower ends of the feet, but of such depth that they will not engage the upper edges of said two vertical walls of a like container when the containers are stacked in superposed relation.

2. A container as recited in `claim l, wherein the upper edges of the said two vertical walls each has a cap strip secured thereto.

3. A container that comprises vertical side walls, a deck sheet, an underframe for the deck sheets, of rec- 3 tangularly arranged bars each disposed directly beneath a vertical wall, the bars being secured together at the corners of the deck, feet extending downardly from each corner of the underframe, corner posts 'secured to the:

underfrarne and projecting upwardly therefrom to a plane above two oppositely disposed vertical walls and being arranged at their upper ends to support the feet of a like superposed container when stacked thereon, and floor-engaging nunners disposed directly beneath two oppositely disposed underframe bars and beneath the said two vertical walls, the runners being positioned mainly at a plane substantially lower than the lower ends of the feet, 4and spaced below the underframe, but being of suich depth that they will not engage the upper edges of said two vertical walls of a like container when their container is in stacked relation thereon.

4. A container as recited in claim 3, wherein the runners are secured to their associated bars by Vertical struts, `at such distance below the bars as will admit lift forks between the runners and the bars.

5. A container as recited in claim 4, wherein the underframe bars are in the form of upwardly-exposed 4 channels, to whose outer flanges the deck sheet and the side walls are secured, the said outer flanges being bent inwardly at their upper edges where they are secured to the side walls and the deck sheet, whereby the side walls occupy planes within the perimetral boundaries of the underframe. Y

References Cited in the le of this patent Y UNITED STATES PATENTS Insoll Oct. 29, 1946 2,541,846 Ullrich et al. Feb. 13, 1951 2,632,578 Brickman Mar. 24, 1953 2,635,786 Wickson Apr. 21, 1953 2,705,604 Averill Apr. 5, 1955 2,738,940 Coit Mar. 20, 1956 2,756,894 Phillips July 31, 1956 2,781,936 Bitney Feb. 19, 1957 2,806,624 Beckner Sept. 17, 1957 2,826,329 Beckner Mar. 11, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 512,041 Belgium June 30, 1952 

